Mental health of 1 st graders

1. Mental health of 1st graders • Social Skills Rating System (Gresham & Elliott 1990) • Problems rated from 1 (never) to 4 (very often) • Four outcomes • Learning problems • difficulties with attentiveness, task persistence, and flexibility • Externalizing problems • how often the child argues, fights, disturbs activities, and acts impulsively • Interpersonal problems • difficulties in forming friendships, dealing with others, expressing feelings, and showing sensitivity • Internalizing problems • anxiety, loneliness, low self-esteem, sadness

2. Five explanatory variables • Lack of classroom resources • always (1), usually (2), sometimes (3), never (4) adequate • Low respect from colleagues • strongly disagree (1) to strongly agree (5) • Low standards at the school • strongly disagree (1) to strongly agree (5) • Interference from paperwork and behavior • strongly disagree (1) to strongly agree (5 • Students reading below grade level • number of students

3. Results (Milkie & Warner, 2011)

4. Conclusions • Learning problems • The impact of lack of resources and low respect from colleagues were each as great at the impact of socio-economic status (SES), as was the impact of having five students reading below grade level • Externalizing problems • Lack of resources, low respect, low standards, and interference each had an impact around half that of SES • Interpersonal problems • Lack of resources, low respect, and interference each had an impact around from one-third to two-thirds that of SES • Internalizing problems • Lack of resources had around twice, and low esteemfrom colleagues around half, the impact of SES